For Kara Goucher, Fewer Miles and More Speed

Kara Goucher, who was 11th in the Olympic marathon in 2:26:07, is committed to next April’s Boston Marathon, but now, more than a month after her London race, she says, "It is time to decide to do what next."

She’s given thought to going to the World Half Marathon in Bulgaria on October 6, noting, "I assumed I would be back at my usual 120 miles a week. But it seems as if my coach, body, and mind have other ideas. I’ve decided to take the fall to work on a skill that I neglected this summer: my speed."

She’ll be cutting back on mileage "to find a little pop in my marathon legs," she explains. "The next few months will be focused on more turnover and less volume," with a weekly workload closer to 90 miles, including just two days per week of double sessions instead of six." Goucher believes "getting some speed back this fall will carry over and make my marathon better when I start up heavy mileage again after the new year."

With this kind of training approach in mind, Goucher is also considering a trip to Australia in December to get the 2013 IAAF World championships 10,000-meter standard of 31:45 out of the way.

The three 2012 U.S. women’s Olympic marathoners–Goucher and her training partner Shalane Flanagan plus Desiree Davila (who had to drop in the early stages of the marathon in London due to injury)–are committed to the 2013 Boston Marathon. Goucher was third there in 2009 and fifth in 2011 in her personal best of 2:24:52. More